


Attracting Attention

by Starrik



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-02-08
Packaged: 2019-03-15 09:57:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13610943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starrik/pseuds/Starrik
Summary: Before they joined the BoB, Killian and Carey investigate the mysterious gaps in their memories to try and find answers.





	Attracting Attention

**Author's Note:**

> At this point, this story contains no spoilers for TAZ Balance (excluding potentially some details about Carey and Killian). I will do my best to forewarn anyone of potential spoilers at the beginning of chapters that contain them. Also, this is my first TAZ fanfic, so I'm still working on trying to get that good, good McElroy tone right.

Killian had to admit to herself that she was surprised to see a kobold in a bar. It wasn’t that she had anything personal against them – well, apart from that time with the pineapple and the whipped cream – but you didn’t tend to see them in small towns. Most folk would probably immediately think that she was a bandit of some sort. Being an orc herself, Killian was familiar with that kind of blanket stereotyping. Curious, but not curious enough to leave her booth, she settled herself in to see how it would go down, but not before checking that her crossbow was strung. Just in case.

Covered in more dust than she thought existed outside old libraries, Carey deftly leapt onto the first free barstool she could find and ordered a drink. The bartender gave her a strange look, but the weariness in her voice and the chink of coins hitting the bar though a coinpurse was enough for him to put her in the category of ‘customer’ and stop giving her a second thought. If only everyone were so easily swayed, her life would be a lot easier.

A knot of toughs peeled themselves from the wooden seats that had fused with their skin, and walked from their customary place at the back of the establishment to form a semi-circle of mediocre manhood around the newcomer. For good measure, Killian set a bolt into her crossbow and waited. It didn’t do to interrupt a brewing barfight before the defender had a chance to distinguish herself, even if Killian was supposed to be the bouncer.

“Don’t much see kobolds in here,” one of the men finally said, sending a wave of satisfied sneers around the circle as if he’d said something clever.

“With eyes like yours, I’m surprised you see anything. Have you considered glasses? They’d probably make you squint less.” Absently, Carey spun around to face her antagonists with a glass of beer as big as her head in hand.

“Smart-mouth little kobold-”

“Dragonborn, actually, and glasses would definitely help with that distinction.” She hopped off of the stool, the surface of her beer not even rippling as she landed on the liquor-stained floorboards.

“You’re a fucking runt of a dragonborn,” another of the men put in.

“Well-spotted. I can see you’re something of an expert in that category though,” she replied, inclining her scaled head towards the man’s far too close crotch. In response, he took a threatening step forwards, which Carey immediately matched. “Sorry, ass-face, I’m not much into hicks. Or dicks in general.”

The man was stunned to realise that a knife had appeared in her hand, which hand gone from being by her side to at his throat without all the usual in-between that you would expect. As the remaining thugs scrambled to draw their motley weaponry, Carey took a draught from her beer. It didn’t look like she was going to get to finish it anyway.

“Too slow boys, I already won this one. Or do you want me to give your friend here a neck-height haircut while you cross the three steps between you and me?”

“You wouldn’t.”

“I don’t know, _kobolds_ are supposed to have a lot more aggression than common sense, right?”

“You bitch, I knew you was a kobold-”

“Okay, bored now.” Carey flipped the knife in her hand so that she held the blade in her fingers, and flung it hilt-first into the stomach of the man to her left. Her other fist swung up to catch the guy in front of her’s temple, crumpling him to the floor immediately. Catching the falling beer with her tail, she darted forward and nicked a third’s wrist so that he dropped his dagger and swept the legs out from underneath the one clutching his stomach from the blunt impact of her first knife. A quick twist to the wrist brought down the now-unarmed man, leaving one final, unharmed assailant.

“I don’t wanna have to hurt ya,” he started slowly, holding a surprisingly polished shortsword in his hands. A slight tremor ran through it, betraying his nerves. Feeling bold, Carey reached out and touched the blunt tip of the sword with her finger and lowered it so that it was pointing straight at her chest.

“Like you could,” she dared. The moment he surged forward, the dragonborn breezed out of the way, giving him a solid thump that ensured he wasn’t going to keep bothering her.

Killian, only halfway out of her seat with her crossbow still sitting on the table, clapped softly.


End file.
